Uvalde Officer Pleads Not Guilty to Child Endangerment Charges
- A former Uvalde police officer, who was among the first responders to the school massacre, has pleaded not guilty to over 25 criminal counts.
- The charges stem from the tragic events during the shooting that took place at a school in Uvalde, Texas.
- The legal proceedings are expected to attract significant attention as they unfold.
Adrian Gonzales, a former officer with the Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District police, pleaded not guilty on Thursday to 29 counts of abandoning and endangering a child. These charges stem from the tragic May 2022 shooting at Robb Elementary School, which resulted in the deaths of 19 children and two teachers. Gonzales was arraigned more than two years after the incident, which has drawn significant scrutiny over law enforcement's delayed response. Video footage from the scene revealed officers, including Gonzales, waiting in hallways while victims were inside classrooms. Gonzales and former police chief Pete Arredondo are the only law enforcement officials to face criminal charges related to the shooting. The indictment against Gonzales alleges that he failed to adhere to his active shooter training during the critical moments of the attack. During his court appearance, Gonzales waived the reading of the charges, and after the hearing, he was confronted by family members of the victims, who demanded an apology. Gonzales explained to investigators that he had responded to a report of a vehicle accident near the school and, upon hearing gunfire, attempted to call for a SWAT team but was unable to transmit from within the building, prompting him to leave. Arredondo, who was viewed as the de facto incident commander during the crisis, faces 10 counts of child endangerment and criminal negligence. He also entered a not guilty plea last week, further complicating the ongoing legal proceedings surrounding the Uvalde tragedy.